Cannabis Sativa, Cannabis Indica, Cannabis Ruderalis, Hybrid... say what?

Botanic historical

People have long used hemp for various purposes and called it differently in different cultures.

Botanically speaking, hemp is cannabis from the hemp family (Cannabacea). The closest relative within this family is hops (Humulus). This is where the unity among botanists ends.

In older writings, the entire genus is referred to as “Cannabis Sativa L.” The “L.” in “Cannabis Sativa L.” stands for the surname of the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus.

Carl Linnaeus, also known as Carl von Linné, was a botanist in the 18th century. As the father of modern taxonomy, he developed a system for classifying and naming plants and animals known as binary nomenclature.

In this system, the name of a plant or animal is divided into two parts. The two parts are the genus name (e.g. “Cannabis”) and the species name (e.g. “Sativa”).

Therefore, the term “Cannabis Sativa L.” is used to describe the Cannabis sativa species and at the same time to acknowledge that Carl Linnaeus was the first to scientifically define this species.

This is common in plant and animal classification to clearly identify and organize them.

In 1785, the French botanist, zoologist and evolutionary biologist Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck classified the Indian variety as Cannabis indica (Indian hemp) based on morphological properties and intoxicating effects.

The Russian botanist Dmitrij Janischewsky was the first to describe Cannabis ruderalis (ruderal hemp) in 1926.

Legal history

According to Lamarck, it is also possible to understand why legal documents until the second half of the 20th century always referred to “Indian hemp” and meant all intoxicating subspecies.

One example is the “Indian Cigarettes” from the Paris pharmaceutical company Grimault & Comp. In Austria they were advertised as Hashish cigarettes from 1860 onwards. [1]

This led to the first documented cannabis prohibition regulation in Austria in 1882.

The “Ordinance of the Ministries of the Interior, Finance and Trade, concerning the ban on the import of products from the Paris company Grimault & Comp. that appear commercially under the name of hemp cigarettes or Indian cigarettes.” [2]

Cannabis was banned internationally for the first time at the 2nd Opium Conference in Geneva in 1925. The term “Chanvre India”, “Indian Hemp” or “Indian Cannabis” was used.

In 1928, the Austrian Federal President explained the Opium Convention of 1925 with a definition in the Federal Law Gazette.

Indian hemp. “Indian hemp is the dried, flower- or fruit-bearing crown of the female canes of Cannabis sativa L., from which the resin has not yet been removed, regardless of the name under which it appears in trade.” [3]

In 1925, this largely corresponded to the provision used in the “UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs” in 1961.

This was also confirmed by Austria's accession in 1978 and is still valid today with Appendix 1 of the Narcotics Ordinance from 1997:

The term cannabis means the flowers or buds of the cannabis plant from which the resin has not been removed, regardless of their name; Seeds and leaves that are not mixed with such stands are excluded.” [4] [5]

“Cannabis (marijuana). Flowers or fruit heads of plants belonging to the genus Cannabis from which the resin has not been removed; are excluded...” [6]

Modern and future breeding and differentiation

From around 1980, the era of cannabis hybrids began, i.e. expert crossings of a wide variety of cannabis classes taking heredity into account.

The characteristics of the landraces from several continents that were still largely pure at the time were often combined and stabilized over several years.

In countries such as India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Colombia, South Africa and many more, a targeted research was conducted for new phenotypes for crossing strains.

The first famous seed banks/seed banks such as Sensi Seeds, Green House Seeds, THSeeds, Dutch Passion, Serious Seeds, Soma Seeds, White Labe Seed Company emerged. The literal heyday of today's variety and cannabis culture began.

From 2003 onwards, several genetic studies were carried out, which no longer confirmed the simple division of cannabis into the previous subspecies sativa, indica and ruderalis. [7] [8] [9]

In Israel, the distinction between medical cannabis will in the future focus on the composition of cannabinoids and terpenes. The pure landraces are threatened with extinction due to mixing. and the hybrids are too complex to breed with.

A percentage breakdown into exact proportions of Indica, Sativa and Ruderalis It is now barely tenable.

Cannabis breeders and growers have been using the terms for a long time. Therefore, here is a brief explanation and distinction between the common terms.

This understanding is based on the appearance and effect of the plants and refers to the sativa, indica and ruderalis dominance.

Cannabis Sativa originally comes from the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. This variety is distinguished by its tall stature and its broad, slender leaves. Sativa plants can typically grow up to six meters tall and have a extended flowering time.

The plants often come from near the equator. They are used to a permanent day and night period of around 12 hours.

In this natural environment, they begin the flowering phase soon after germination.

But they grow throughout the entire flowering period. This phenomenon is called stretching in specialist circles

The effect is described as rather stimulating and energizing. Since they often don't have time to fully mature, the higher THC:CBN ratio could explain this often-described effect.

Cannabis Indica originally comes from the mountainous regions of Afghanistan, Pakistan and India.

Plants referred to as indica are more compact and bushy compared to sativa. They have wider leaves and denser, shorter inflorescences.

Indica strains react more flexibly to cold climates and have a shorter flowering time. They often came from areas with a larger day and night time difference between the seasons. Therefore, they grow on longer days and greatly reduce growth during the flowering period.

In contrast to Cannabis Sativa plants known as Indica often begin flowering within 9-10 hours of darkness. In Austria this corresponds to July or August.

Combined with the shorter flowering time, these plants can often fully mature. The resulting lower THC:CBN ratio could explain the often described sedative effect.

Cannabis Indica is commonly linked with soothing and tranquilizing impacts. This is due to its regular medicinal application, such as alleviating discomfort or enhancing sleep quality.

Cannabis Ruderalis is the third main type of cannabis often described. It comes from the northern regions of Russia, Siberia and Eastern Europe.

Ruderalis plants are small, have lower THC levels, and are less productive than sativa or indica.

However, what makes Ruderalis unique is its ability to automatically flower regardless of the length of the day or night.

It is not dependent on a specific dark time phase. It will start flowering automatically after a certain number of weeks. The further north the origin of the ruderalis, the more intense.

This property is used by breeders to create so-called “autoflowering” hybrids. That's why Ruderalis genetics are combined with Sativa or Indica genetics.

Autoflowering strains are popular among home gardeners due to their ease of use and short growth and flowering times.

Autoflowering varieties are a guarantee of partial success, especially at higher alpine altitudes. A popular addition to the growing range for summers with short climates.

Ruderal flora comes from the Latin rudus, rubble. This refers to the first settlers on sites that have been influenced and changed by humans, such as embankments or rubble heaps.

May many hemp genetics continue to populate this beautiful earth for many more thousands of years.

[1] https://uwe-spiekermann.com/tag/pharmazeutika/

[2] https://alex.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/alex?aid=rgb&datum=1882&page=146&size=45

[3] https://alex.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/alex?aid=bgb&datum=1928&page=1580&size=45

[4] https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/commissions/CND/Mandate_Functions/conventions.html

[5] https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxeAbfrage=Bundesnormen&Gesetzesnummer=10010401

[6] https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/Dokumente/Bundesnormen/NOR40250735/NOR40250735.html

[7] https://bsapubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.3732/ajb.91.6.966

[8] https://phytokeys.pensoft.net/article/46700/

[9] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0379073807000424?via%3DihubV